Although Dwight Howard amassed 19,485 points throughout his illustrious 18-year NBA career, one consistent criticism of him was his lack of a go-to move on offense. Yes, he feasted on the offensive glass and scored easily whenever he planted himself deep in the paint. However, Howard never mastered the skyhook like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar or the “Dream Shake” made famous by Hakeem Olajuwon.
One thing that Howard was spectacular at was rocking the rim. With springs for legs, he could easily launch himself into the air and finish over whoever was foolhardy enough to challenge him at the rim.
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During his appearance on “NBA Today,” the eight-time All-Star was asked to choose what his favorite career highlights were. And when asked which alley-oop stood out the most, Howard picked his thunderous, one-handed slam over the Boston Celtics.
Pierce couldn’t help but appreciate the slam
Given the choice between his buzzer-beating, alley-oop slam over Tim Duncan that gave the Orlando Magic a win over the San Antonio Spurs and the transition slam he had over the Celtics, Howard went with the latter, primarily because of how Paul Pierce reacted.
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On that particular play, the Magic got out in transition and Howard passed the ball to point guard Jameer Nelson on the wing. The moment he let the ball go, he already knew what his teammate would do, so he immediately jumped as high as he could. Nelson’s pass was right on the money, and Howard ended up ramming the ball home so hard that it rocked the rim and sent the arena into a frenzy.
“I got to go with that with the Celtics. I gotta go with that one, ’cause Jameer’s pass is nice,” Howard recalled.
The cherry on top, though, Howard said, was what he heard Pierce mutter after the play.
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“And then Paul Pierce is like, ‘Jesus Christ,'” he shared, laughing.
He added that while the one over Duncan was memorable, there was just something about Nelson’s pinpoint pass that made the slam over the Celtics an all-time great in his book.
Posterized Jrue Holiday
With his nuclear athleticism, Howard earned a solid reputation as a poster merchant. Anyone who tried to stop him from completing a dunk was likely to end up on a poster.
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Philadelphia 76ers guard Jrue Holiday apparently did not get the memo and tried to get in Howard’s way during a fastbreak attack, resulting in a posterization so bad that even his teammates couldn’t help but react to it.
“Jesus Christ. What was he thinking?” the legendary big man remarked after watching a replay of the highlight slam.
That slam was so vicious that even Lou Williams, Holiday’s teammate on the Sixers at that time, still remembers it to this day. He recalled that as Howard completed the two-handed flush, he and a few other teammates momentarily forgot they weren’t supposed to celebrate Holiday getting dunked on.
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“We jumped up off the bench and forgot we was his teammates,” Williams shared. “You can see us on the bench — me and Andre Iguodala like, ‘Ohh!'”
At the height of his powers, Howard’s athleticism was truly unlike anyone’s in the league. His dunks were so forceful that even opponents couldn’t help but be in awe of him.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 26, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.